Duke's Food Obsession

Yes, this is still a family magazine, so I will thank you to get your mind out of the gutter. That is not the kind of blindfolding I am talking about. But, more on that later.

As a veteran of the restaurant industry for more years than I’d like to admit, I have seen many parents practically do hand stands in order to get their kids to eat. Here comes the choo-choo! Or they humiliate themselves into making propeller airplane noises. And, heaven forbid the food in question is not perfectly square and golden brown and crusted with some corn based product. This is not to say that kids are the only ones that fickle (read: damn picky) when it comes to their food. I have seen grown adults flinch and make faces when the suggestion is floated to order something a bit different. Instead of suggesting duck breast, you would think the offering was a cyanide tablet.

Now, you could look at my girth and say, “my, it’s clear you have no food phobias.” And, you would be right. Not only have I rarely met food that I don’t like, except maybe beets, raw mushrooms, and tofu, I was fortunate growing up to have a father who was an adventurous eater. In addition to being adventurous, my father was very well traveled due to his career, so I was encouraged to try many things. No airplane noises for him, but there was gung ho encouragement.

So, it should be no surprise that I do not suffer children who flat out refuse to try any new foodstuff. I am not a complete jerk though, although some of you would beg to differ. My kids are only required to try, the food. If they don’t like it, they don’t have to eat it. But herein lies the problem, some food is downright scary—either from descriptions, or to look at.

Just imagine if instead of being sold a “hot dog” you were told what was in it. What is the old saying? Two things you should never watch being made are sausage and legislation?

So, finally, back to the blindfold. My kids, being somewhat normal, do not readily dive into certain food items. So, in an attempt not to make multiple dinner items, I have instituted a weekly “blindfold dinner.” The rules are simple: one by one my sons are blindfolded by my wife and led into the kitchen. There, they try what is on the menu for the blindfold dinner. Just one bite. If they do not like it, they can have something else. For them, at their age, it is a lot of fun—a game. And, I must say there is also a bit of peer pressure to like the food.

What has been the outcome? Well, so far my kids have devoured minestrone with pesto, lamb curry with channa masala, and, here it comes: split pea soup in all of its green splendor. Of course, there have been hiccups: escargot did not go over. But, I take the blame for this one as I tried a new preparation rather than the requisite escargot bourgignon, replete with its ratio of about 82 parts butter to one part snails.

So, if your kids are like mine, or even your spouse, go find your blindfold-I will not tell you where to look, and try your own blindfold night!